Fairytales
by chiisana-inori
Summary: Once upon a time doesn't always end happily ever after. Katniss-centric vignettes, books 1-3.


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**F.A.I.R.Y.T.A.L.E.S**

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_Snow White_

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Today is Reaping day. There should be far more important things on my mind but I find myself standing in front of the reflective glass of a small shop. I trail my fingers over a dirt streaked cheek, catching loose tendrils of matted hair. My double, a watery, faded image, does the same. Her brow creases into a frown.

'_We could do it, you know. Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we could make it.'_

There are many girls in District Twelve who have eyes for at Gale Hawthorne. Even Merchant girls are not immune to his charms. With no hard life etched on their faces and hands, skin as white as snow and lips painted red, any one of them would make a pretty ornament on his arm.

Yet he would never run away with one.

They don't know how to make a clean kill with an arrow to the eye or skin a rabbit. They can't distinguish the which plants are edible and which are poisonous or fashion a snare in ten different ways. He asked me because I make a good hunting partner and together, we would have the best chance of survival. Mirrors don't lie. Why else would he want an underfed, plain girl like me?

But as I walk home, a little voice whispers in my ear, _'Then why did he look at you like you were the fairest of them all?'_

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_Cinderella_

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From the roots of my hair to the tips of my toes, Cinna transforms me from a Seam girl to a princess for the interview.

The last puzzle piece (the most integral, he adds in a serious voice) is what he holds in his hands; matching red heels with fiery embellisments.

"But no one will be able to see them with the floor length dress," I say, confused.

He smiles and shrugs. "It's more about the magic; how they make you feel. A little height and confidence goes a long way."

I don't really understand but he's the expert, not me. I get about as civilized as a pair of sturdy working boots with plain laces. I have no idea how some of the intricate straps and buckles work on these Capitol shoes, which look more like beautiful torture devices than practical footwear. Lucky for me Cinna is always quick to lend a helping hand. I would feel embarrassed being waited on and treated like a doll but at the moment I find it neccessary.

I sit in a chair, extending my leg out to him from the folds of my dress. Twice he softly grasps me by the ankle, sliding the shoe over my toes and under my heel before carefully fastening it on. Just like that I'm complete. I take a moment to marvel at this gentle act, how pretty the shoe looks, how it fits me perfectly.

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_Beauty and the Beast_

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"If I didn't know any better, I would've thought they brought in a different girl."

It's his roundabout way of complimenting me. Effie catches him trying to pat my head and squawks from across the room, warning him not to muss my hair right before the interview.

When he turns his face, I notice how sharply our reflections contrast in the big, luminous mirror. He batted away any Stylist that tried to approach him with as much as a pair of scissors. "This is about the kids, not me," he said, ignoring the fact that as a Mentor and representative of the District, he's just as heavily scrutinized by the rest of Panem. I wonder how many years it took for Effie to give up and leave him be.

The bright artificial light gives him a pale, patchy complexion and over-pronounces his shadowed eyes and unshaven state. His clothes are rumpled and his long hair falls in tangles. Everything seems to be magnified and worsened next to my laboriously constructed illusion.

I know he hasn't always looked like this, tired beyond his years. Once upon a time he was a young man. I try to imagine him as a Tribute. Like me; he's sitting in front of a mirror, quelling nerves and searching for familiarity in the stranger in the glass. A handsome prince, untarnished by dark memories and time.

I start to say something, but it's too late. He staggers off.

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**A/n:** I had this sitting in my computer for over a year until I decided to fix it up and post it. Bluebeard, Red Riding Hood, and Sleeping Beauty are up next. I haven't planned any for 'Mockingjay' yet, so feel free to leave any suggestions. :)

-Chiisana inori


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